Razorbacks’ road trip continues against Memphis
Posted on Wednesday, December 3, 2008
ANDY SHUPE Northwest Arkansas Times Arkansas senior post Whitney Jones (31 ) shoots over Northwestern sophomore center Amy Jaeschke (22 ) during the first half of the Razorbacks ’ 60-44 win Sunday in Bud Walton Arena.
The Arkansas women’s basketball team gained some experience and even enjoyed some time in the sun during the Thanksgiving weekend, walking on the beach between games at the Junkanoo Jam on Grand Bahama Island.
Coach Tom Collen just hopes his team isn’t sleepwalking by the time they hit court at the FedEx Forum in Memphis, Tenn., tonight.
The Razorbacks (5-1) returned to Fayetteville from their weekend tournament with a win and loss after flight delays kept the team from getting into bed to rest after midnight Monday.
A day of classes, lifting weights and an early afternoon practice session took their toll.
Monday certainly didn’t provide one of the greatest of practices, Collen admitted.
“You worry about fatigue, especially when you’re getting ready to play three games in four days, but it’s something you have to fight through,” Collen said. “It’s another experience.”
The trip to Memphis for a 7 p.m. tip today re-starts a stretch of five games away from Bud Walton Arena. After tonight’s non-conference trip, the Razorbacks will travel to Manhattan, Kan., for games Friday and Saturday in the Commerce Bank Wildcat Classic.
“I think I’d rather disperse the games — home and away — a little bit more,” Collen said. “But sometimes when you do your schedule, you don’t always get what you want.”
There’s plenty to be learned during this week for Arkansas, which now starts two freshmen and relies heavily on point guard Shanita Arnold, a sophomore, in its dribble-drive offense.
Freshman guards Ceira Ricketts and Lyndsay Harris average 13. 5 and 11 points per game, respectively, early in the season, to lead the Razorbacks.
“I think it’s a positive that they’ve stepped up so early in their career, and so far have been consistent,” Collen said. “But we’re only six games into the year. I’ve seen scoring averages drop from 15 to 8 in a 30-game schedule, but I think these kids work real hard, they’re pretty aggressive and they have different skill sets that allow them to score.
“It’s a good feeling — as you’re trying to rebuild a program — when you can insert two freshmen into your lineup and they can be averaging double figures and getting off to such a good start. It makes you feel good about the future.”
For now, there are mistakes to be corrected. The trip to the Bahamas provided the first loss and a few flaws.
In what Collen called the team’s worst 20 minutes of the season, Arkansas trailed by 26 during the first half to Oregon State in its first game of the Junkanoo Jam, but battled back in the second half and ultimately fell, 69-56.
“I think we learned that we can’t afford to get off to a bad start and I think we also confirmed what we’ve always known — if we don’t score, we can’t press,” Collen said. “And right now, if our press is what leads to the pace that we want to play at, we’ve got to find a way to score.
“We just happened to hit our worst 20 minutes of defense and our worst 20 minutes of offense at the same time. We dug ourselves a hole we couldn’t get out of.”
Yet another challenge awaits this week with the four-game stretch. The Memphis road trip, the last game inserted into the schedule during the offseason, will give Arkansas another step up in competition as they await a possible match-up with Big 12 champion, Kansas State, on Saturday. First comes Memphis tonight, then Mississippi Valley State on Friday in the first round of the Wildcat Classic.
“It’s been a gradual step to a different level each [game], a different challenge every time,” Collen said. “It builds to the Kansas State game if we can make it that far.”
After a 10-win season and the hiring of a new head coach, Memphis (5-2) looks rejuvenated this season, Collen said. The Tigers are not much different from last season’s squad when it comes to talent, but coach Melissa McFerrin has mixed and matched her starting lineup with much success. Three players average scores in double figures, with forward Ashley Thornton nearing double-double territory with 11.7 points an 9.4 rebounds per game.
Simply put, things could be quite different from Arkansas’ 91-66 shellacking of Memphis in Bud Walton Arena last year.
Finding consistency with Arkansas’ pressuring defense will be the main draw for the Razorbacks’ road excursion.
“I’ve always believed and always preached to our teams that, when you play a team on their home floor, you have to bring 10 to 20 percent more energy in order to make up for the difference that team is likely going to have because of their crowd,” Collen said.
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